AmBank expects more digital economy initiatives in 2018 Budget

KUALA LUMPUR: AMMB Holdings Bhd (AmBank Group) expects to see more initiatives allocated for the digital economy, particularly high-technology industries, e-commerce as well as the manufacturing sector in the upcoming Budget 2018 announcement.

“It is our hope that the 2018 Budget will facilitate the advancement of the digital economy, particularly high-technology industries, e-commerce as well as the manufacturing sector in terms of Industry 4.0,” said group chief executive officer, Datuk Sulaiman Mohd Tahir in a statement.

“Small and medium-sized enterprises together with the digital economy are key growth drivers. These segments should benefit from incentives that can stimulate further growth.”

He also expressed hopes that the upcoming Budget will also continue on its focus on the rising cost of living.

“To address the current socio-economic conditions, we expect the Budget to continue with targeted incentives for households to address the rising cost of living, particularly for the M40 and B40 category. We also anticipate a continued focus on affordable housing with measures supporting home buyers as well as developers.”

The Malaysian economy had performed strongly in the first half of 2017, with a gross domestic products (GDP) growth averaging at 5.7 per cent which surpasses the government’s projections of between four to five per cent.

The momentum, which was largely supported by a strong export market as well as healthy domestic demand is expected to continue until the end of the year.